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Katana
The Katana is a close combat weapon, introduced in Left 4 Dead 2. It is found in: *Dead Center *The Passing *Dark Carnival *Hard Rain *The Sacrifice (Left 4 Dead 2 only) *No Mercy (Left 4 Dead 2 only) The Katana is classified as a Slashing weapon, will sever limbs, and spew blood on your screen. Achievements Notes * The Katana is based from the katana, a sword worn and used by a Japanese elite warrior class known as samurai. * It is odd that there are many Katanas throughout the game, as these swords are not common in America. It is possible that some of them are well-kept antiques formerly belonging to collectors, functional modern replicas, or even shin guntō from World War II (a common find at gun shows all over the country). * When picking up a Katana, a Survivor may say, "Grabbing a ninja sword". This is due to the popularity of the Japanese ninja in American media. However, a katana is in fact a sword used by the Japanese samurai. Despite popular belief, the closest thing to a "ninja sword", otherwise known as a ninjatō, may never have existed and is purely theoretical. Though under the right circumstances, a ninja or shinobi may have used a katana. A katana has a long curved blade and is generally held with two hands, while the ninjatō is a short (generally straight) blade. * Ellis and Rochelle are the only Survivors to refer to the Katana as a Katana, though Ellis may still call it a "ninja sword" for some reason. * In a recent Blog Post, the Katana was voted the most favorite melee weapon on both Xbox 360 and PC. * Despite being held by two hands, light from the flashlight still appears in front of the survivor that equips the Katana. * The Katana is one of the melee weapons featured in The Sacrifice. Its inclusion in the said campaign may be a reference to Kill Bill, a film whose name which is also the namesake of an achievement where Bill must be sacrificed. The Katana is also seen in the trailer where Zoey is seen handing Louis one. ** It could also be a reference to seppuku, or hara-kiri, a form of Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment. Part of the samurai bushido honor code, seppuku was used voluntarily by samurai to die with honour rather than fall into the hands of their enemies (and likely suffer torture), as a form of capital punishment for samurai who had committed serious offenses, or performed for other reasons that had brought shame to them. Bill's death and the Katana's inclusion (though a short blade, traditionally a Tantō is more often used than the katana) in the campaign may be a partial reference to this, given the fact that Bill sacrificed himself to let the other survivors escape (an act of heroism rather than honor) and at the same time, further deferred himself from being left to the mercy of the Infected. * The Katana is noted to be present in many campaigns in the game, including in DLC's. Its popularity among players is the reason for this. ** Ironically, the Crowbar, one of the least favorite weapons in the game, exists in the campaigns where there is a Katana. * When closely observed, the Katana's [[wikipedia:Japanese sword mountings#Tsuba|''tsuba]], or hilt, has an engraving of a scorpion (this has not yet been confirmed by Valve) in it. This is interesting as well as intriguing, as most ''tsuba''s are round and are meant to be used to prevent the hand from sliding onto the blade during thrusts as opposed to protecting from an opponent's blade. The diameter of the average katana tsuba is 7.5–8 centimeters (3.0–3.1 in). External Links * PAX 09: Highway Fire katana - One of the first videos featuring the Katana. * http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRdsIRSTL9A&feature=related Gameplay with Katana in Scavenge Mode. Category:Weapons Category:Close Combat Weapons Category:Left 4 Dead 2